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On Friday, A Bola reported and ESPN confirmed that Ronaldo wants to quit Real Madrid and leave Spain after being accused of tax fraud.

What makes this news so surprising is that he signed a mega five-year deal with the club one year ago.

“I want to stay here and finish here,” he said at the time. “It is not my last contract, I want to keep going until I’m 41 [he’s now 32], but now the most important thing is this special moment that makes me happy and my family too.”

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The disgruntled superstar’s sentiments of wanting to continue to play in Spain now sound like a thing of the very distant past.

Cristiano Ronaldo wants to quit Real Madrid after being accused of tax evasion, a source has confirmed to ESPN FC. https://t.co/aftslVaP2z

“He is outraged — feels great indignation with all the speculation about, for example, the tax story, and he believes he was unfairly and disproportionately singled out as an example, despite having voluntarily paid [taxes]. He is, in fact, a victim of persecution in Spain and [the situation has] reached its limit with so much injustice.”

With Real Madrid’s top earner threatening to leave as a result of the weighty accusations, the Spanish club will have to work fast to make sure it can help resolve the issue if they hope to repeat as Champions League winner.